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Newbie BMW owner, and loving my 325i. VERY happy. One thing I have noticed however, is that it seems I need to pull up pretty far on the e-brake before it actually will prevent the car from rolling. Is this normal? How many 'clicks' is normal?

i just adjusted mine last weekend. it used to be very high up near to the armrest piece and on a step enough hill it would still roll. now i think i have it almost half way before it engages and about half when it is enough to hold the car even on a steep hill.

how to adjust is very simple.

1) jack rear end up
2) remove tires
3) remove caliber
4) remove rotor
5) there is a little piece next to the spring that looks like a clicker. you want to make the shoes go out so turn accordingly so that the pads go out and you will notice it. turn about 8 complete clicks (plenty)
6) reverse installation of everything

Actually, there are adjustment nuts under the e-brake handle's cover. There's a nut for the left and the right e-brake shoes. Yes, "shoes" as in drum brakes. The e-brakes are drums, with the drums built into the rear rotors.

At the rear of the e-brake handle's "leather" (I think it's a type of plastic) where it clips into the console, push forward (towards the front of the car) and then up. You'll be able to slide the cover up far enough to access the 2 nuts. The "standard" is that you should feel increased resistance as you pull the handle up at the 3rd click. That is, from the e-brake being off to the 2nd click, the effort needed to raise the e-brake handle should be constant. Once you hit the 3rd click, the effort should increase noticably.

adjust the shoes:
you do not need to remove the rear wheels. pull the e-brake up three clicks. Remove one rear wheel bolt, rotate the wheel until you can see the adjustment wheel through the hole. use a small flat head screwdriver to turn the adjustment wheel until you can hear the shoes make contact with the drums when you spin the wheel. then back off a small bit. do the same on the other side. now that your shoes are adjusted, adjust the cable pull.

adjust cable pull:
completely lower the hand brake. tighten the cables until there is no slack in either cable.

adjust the shoes:
you do not need to remove the rear wheels. pull the e-brake up three clicks. Remove one rear wheel bolt, rotate the wheel until you can see the adjustment wheel through the hole. use a small flat head screwdriver to turn the adjustment wheel until you can hear the shoes make contact with the drums when you spin the wheel. then back off a small bit. do the same on the other side. now that your shoes are adjusted, adjust the cable pull.

adjust cable pull:
completely lower the hand brake. tighten the cables until there is no slack in either cable.

More or less, yes. You also want to make sure both sides are adjusted evenly.

1. Clean e-brake shoes & drums using the procedure described in the owner's manual (drive a short bit with the e-brake partially engaged)
2. Adjust both sides using adjustment screw (all the way tight, then back off a few turns)
3. Check handle for proper operation (3-4 clicks till it starts to engage, 7-8 clicks till it's fully tight)
4. Raise rear end and make sure both wheels turn freely when handle is completely down, turn with some mild resistance at about 3 clicks
5. Adjust cable if necessary - tighten/loosen both screws the same amount!
Repeat 4. and 5. until you're satisfied with proper operation.

Umm, I have a 325Ci, I dont have Drums on the rear, its disc, with caliper, I dont see any adjustment screw for a flathead when i pull the bolt. I see 2 hex-shaped screws, is that what i am looking for?

There's a simpler way to do it, I did this to my 2005 325ci and it works great. Take the E brake boot off. And tighten the two screws to a point where you cannot pull the E Brake up very far... I tightened the screws for about 5 minutes and I can pull my E Brake up about 1/2 way the stock feel would be and the brakes would be fully engaged and wouldn't roll down the hill... Feels great!

Umm, I have a 325Ci, I dont have Drums on the rear, its disc, with caliper, I dont see any adjustment screw for a flathead when i pull the bolt. I see 2 hex-shaped screws, is that what i am looking for?

we all have rear disc brakes - the emergency brakes are a separate set of drum brakes

Blame it on a women ,found a deal 2003 330ci convertable [zsp ,zcw ]w/43,452 miles, for 12k, i said i can get new kia for that ,she replied have you ever driven a bmw, no i said, that's a 53,000 car new and it's only has 43,500 miles that's a deal of the centry,so i drove it ,and she hit in my head for saying kia in the same breath and it's the nicest-fun car i have ever owned . no owners manual was w/ it , found this awesome site and got all the info and more.......thanks all! P.S behind every successful man is woman telling him when he's wrong....

Blame it on a women ,found a deal 2003 330ci convertable [zsp ,zcw ]w/43,452 miles, for 12k, i said i can get new kia for that ,she replied have you ever driven a bmw, no i said, that's a 53,000 car new and it's only has 43,500 miles that's a deal of the centry,so i drove it ,and she hit in my head for saying kia in the same breath and it's the nicest-fun car i have ever owned . no owners manual was w/ it , found this awesome site and got all the info and more.......thanks all! P.S behind every successful man is woman telling him when he's wrong....

no software for my camra phone. hang tight pics coming

nice thread hijack, but you seriously considered getting a Kia over a BMW?